Be Careful What You Witch For (A Family Fortune Mystery) (7 page)

Heads swiveled in Seth’s direction.

“How do you know that?” said Dad.

I felt my heart pound. Seth didn’t want anyone to know about his . . . connection to the animals.

“Tuffy doesn’t like anyone,” I said, and glanced sharply at Seth.

He realized his error. “We were at Diana’s once when he stopped by and Tuffy started shaking and went and cowered by Baxter,” Seth said. It wasn’t his best cover story.

Vi looked at Tuffy with narrowed eyes.

I felt I had to argue the point even though I wanted to get off this topic.

“C’mon, you can’t be taking this seriously. He hates everyone and he’s always cowering.” I appealed to my dad, usually the sensible one in the family.

He shook his head. “I don’t know. I think animals can sense things that people can’t.”

I sat back in my chair, defeated.

“
Any
way, until they find any real evidence of intentional harm, I think this is just an unfortunate accident,” I said.

Everyone looked at me with varying degrees of pity at my lack of imagination.

11

Seth and I stood in the backyard with the dogs. It was much colder than the last time we’d done this and I was glad I’d thrown on a jacket. Seth shivered next to me in a T-shirt and a light hoodie.

“I talked to your mom today.”

“Yeah, she texted.” He kept his face turned away from me.

“What’s going on in New York? Is something wrong in school?”

He shook his head and buried his hands under his arms. He looked pathetic. I was about to tell him to go inside when Vi appeared in the doorway. She spotted us and picked her way across the yard.

“Seth, you’re freezing. Go inside and make a big deal out of your grandfather’s new contraption,” Vi said. For all of Vi’s communication with other realms, she was still suspicious of anything electronic.

Seth looked at Vi with relief and raced into the house.

“I should get Seth to the ceremony. He doesn’t want to miss it.” I stepped past Vi.

Her arm shot out and she gripped my arm. “Stay a minute.”

“What’s up, Vi? I don’t know anything more than I told you.”

“I’m here to tell
you
something.” She peered around the yard, and lowered her voice. “I don’t want your mother to hear this.”

I was speechless. Vi never kept secrets from my mother.

“Why can’t my mom know about this?”

“Just trust me. She doesn’t want to know.”

“Okay. . . .”

“There’s someone you need to talk to.” She looked over her shoulder as if there were spies hiding in the trees. I wondered if she suspected the squirrels, or maybe it was the owls.

“I’m not investigating Rafe’s death,” I said, and crossed my arms. “I don’t think there is anything to investigate.”

“Not about Rafe. This is something else. Your grandmother would have wanted you to meet this woman.”

That stopped me. My grandmother Agnes had died when I was fifteen. She’d been a gifted psychic. Some people thought she was the reason Crystal Haven had lasted so long as a spiritualist community and had become famous. She’d known I had visions and dreams and had promised to teach me how to use them instead of being haunted by them. Before she got the chance, she died of cancer. Vi knew that mentioning my grandmother was the best way to get me to listen.

“Why have you never mentioned this mystery woman before?” I had my hands on my hips now, just like my mother. “If she lives here, how come I haven’t met her?”

“You know
of
her.” She lowered her voice even more.
“Neila Whittle
.
”
Vi made the name sound like the title of a horror movie.

“The old witch? I thought she was dead.”

Neila Whittle was the topic of many playground ghost stories in Crystal Haven. A recluse, she lived on the edge of town, up a private road. Her property was surrounded by a black ironwork fence. It was as if central casting had plopped a classic witch into Crystal Haven for the children to fear. The house itself was small, stone, and completely covered in vines. It sat in the middle of a grove of trees as if it had sprouted there of its own volition. Every kid in Crystal Haven had been dared to climb her fence and creep toward the house on one dark night or another. It was part of growing up here.

“She’s alive and well and still . . . You need to talk to her.” Vi nodded and wouldn’t say any more. Holding her finger to her lips, she shooed me inside.

I found Seth in my father’s office, huddled over a small black box with backlit buttons and a glowing screen. It was definitely a step up from his old scanner. Dad was giving Seth the rundown of 10-codes.

“Hey, we better get going if we want to make the ceremony,” I said.

Seth had been writing the codes on a card, which he folded and stuffed in his jeans pocket.

“Okay. Later, Papa.” Seth held out his hand for a fist bump and after considering for a moment Dad tapped his fist against Seth’s.

We said good-bye to Mom and Vi, who were in the living room poring over Mom’s new tarot cards. The dogs followed and we all jumped in the Jeep.

“That was pretty uneventful for a dinner over there,” Seth said as he leaned back in the seat.

I nodded, thinking that even though the dogs hadn’t eaten anything they shouldn’t, and no one had gotten into a heated argument, something eventful had happened. Vi had gone behind my mother’s back and pointed me in a direction I didn’t even know existed.

*   *   *

The lot was
packed when we arrived. Because the fair had been dismantled that afternoon, the final ceremony was to take place at Message Circle. It was closer to the road than the fair had been and would allow all the festival attendees to get out to the main roads quickly to drive home.

We picked our way along the path, which was lit with battery-powered lanterns every fifteen feet or so. Seth had launched a vocal campaign over the summer to use kerosene lamps. He had an affection for the oil lamps my mom dragged out when the power failed during storms. Diana and I had vetoed the idea for safety and transportation reasons.

“See how fake that looks? Not spooky at all,” Seth groused as we walked along the path.

“It’s not supposed to be spooky. And they’re safer than kerosene. You can’t go driving around with a backseat full of kerosene.”

“Whatever,” Seth grumbled. “It would look way better.”

Thankfully, we caught up to some other people walking toward the circle and he fell silent.

Lit with small torches, eerie shadows jumped among the seats and darkened the trees as we approached Message Circle. Larger torches flanked a boulder draped with black cloth holding Diana’s cauldron.

There was an air of celebration as people dressed in hooded robes greeted others dressed in jeans and leather jackets. A few wore down jackets and hats. I wished I had worn gloves. Morgan Lavelle was hard to miss. She towered over her two companions. One was the woman I had seen Diana speaking with at the festival. Her earrings glinted in the firelight. The other was an older version of the first, with long gray hair. I assumed it must be Ember and Bronwyn.

Diana was already in the center of the circle directing people to find a seat. She wore her black velvet robes and I was jealous of the warmth they must provide. Seth and I shivered in our light jackets. A long-standing superstition, I didn’t pull out my winter coat until the first snow. The longer I held out without wearing the coat, the less snow we would get. I didn’t think it actually worked, since every year we got dumped on. But the habit persisted. Lake-effect snow was worthy of superstition.

Seth entertained himself by watching his breath turn to mist. He at least had Tuffy sitting on his lap for warmth. Baxter would crush me if he sat on my lap. I tried to bury my hands in Baxter’s fur and his drool soaked through my jeans when he rested his head on my leg. It was time to get this ceremony going. Skye Paxton spotted us and sat next to Seth. She introduced her younger sister, Faith, who looked about fifteen. They fawned over Tuffy and I wasn’t sure which one was enjoying it more, Seth or Tuffy.

A hush fell as Diana stood and raised her arms. After a brief welcome, she asked us to join hands. Ugh. I hated holding hands with strangers. I grabbed Seth’s hand and he took Skye’s hand as if his life depended on it. I turned to my right with my hand out and was surprised to see Lucan sitting there. He was very quiet for such a large man. At least he wasn’t a complete stranger.

Diana thanked everyone for participating, and said she would send positive energy through the circle. It reminded me of my Girl Scout days when we would hold hands and pass the squeeze around the circle. Then a lit sage stick made its way through the crowd just like on Halloween—Wiccans were big on clearing energy with smoke. She asked us to sit, and allowed the crowd of about forty to share some favorite experiences from the festival. This, of course, began to devolve into a discussion of Rafe’s death. After a few queries about Rafe, his coven, and his allergies, Diana firmly steered everyone to more pleasant subjects, such as the workshops, food, and camaraderie. I still heard muttered comments about Rafe, but the group respected Diana enough to move on. When the comments had died down, Diana raised her arms in the center of the circle. The group fell silent.

Diana turned in a circle and said:

Lady of Darkness, Lord of Shadows,

Fire, wind, air, and water

We offer love and thanks

For this Sabbat rite.

O ancient ones, we bid thee farewell.

Blessed be, and so mote it be!

She threw a lit match into her cauldron and blue flames shot out. Fire was a big crowd-pleaser.

“Wicked,” Seth whispered next to me.

“So mote it be,” said Lucan.

Scattered murmurs of “blessed be” made their way through the crowd and people began to collect their belongings and gather in small clumps to say good-bye.

The ceremony over, Seth, Skye, and Faith approached Diana. I could tell Seth really wanted to get a look into the cauldron. It was just rubbing alcohol and would eventually burn itself out but Seth looked like he thought it was real magic. I nodded to Lucan, and Baxter and I headed toward Diana. She was guarding the cauldron from curious visitors.

“Have you ever set anything on fire with that thing?” a small, elderly woman asked with a bit too much excitement in her voice.

“No, it’s really quite contained. But you need to be careful if you use it inside.” Diana smiled at the crowd that was gathering. Maybe she’d sell a couple of cauldrons before the night was over.

After a few more questions about the cauldron and some passing-out of business cards, Diana was ready to go. The teens took photos of one another and exchanged phone numbers.

Diana let Seth put out the fire by dropping the lid on top. We left him to guard the cauldron while we trucked the rest of her supplies out to her car. Lucan had been standing off to the side and now stepped forward to help carry our bags. Diana smiled and nodded her thanks. By the time we returned, the cauldron had cooled and we carried it to the lot as well. I gave Diana a long hug and promised to stop by her house the next day. She said she wasn’t going to the store but was letting Bethany open up. This alone told me how hard the last couple of days had been on her.

12

The next day, Monday, Seth slept in. I took the two dogs for a business walk and promised them a longer one when Seth woke up. Baxter groaned and slumped onto the couch when I got my keys out. Tuffy’s eyebrows went up into his hairline and he did his nervous dance. He followed me, looking forlorn as I shut the door behind me.

I called Tom Andrews on the way to The Daily Grind and he agreed to meet me. Mac was never forthcoming with information on an open case. Tom was more generous. I hoped he was in the loop on the whole Rafe Godwin situation. After what Diana had told me about Dylan’s suspicions, I was getting a sick feeling in my stomach. Sometimes it was hard to distinguish between regular nerves and actual “feelings” and so I ignored my gut and decided to approach the problem in a logical and controlled manner. I would gather information, examine the facts, and not get caught by Mac.

This time of year the only people in the coffee shop were regulars. We had reclaimed our town from the summer tourist crowd and now that the festival had decamped, the place was back to its quiet normal. This was good and bad. I liked not waiting in line, but growing up in a tourist town trains you to view the invaders as a necessary annoyance. Without vacationers, the economy would shut down, but it was nice to feel like we had Crystal Haven to ourselves for a little while.

Josh started making my usual latte when I walked in the door.

“Should I start Diana’s tea?” he asked. His black watch cap barely contained the shaggy mop of dark hair.

I shook my head. “No, but you can make whatever Tom Andrews usually drinks.”

Josh cocked his head, raised his eyebrows, and crossed his arms. He and Alex had been partners for years. They were overly invested in Mac and me getting back together and I felt guilty about keeping it a secret from them. Plus it meant they saw deeper meaning in all my actions.

I put both hands up. “We’re just friends. Everyone knows that.”

Josh shook his head. “Not everyone.”

Fortunately, Tom swung through the door at that moment, nearly wiping out a coffee-mug pyramid, and I was able to extricate myself from the conversation.

Tom waved to Josh. “I’ll have a—”

“Already started, dude,” Josh said.

Tom and I had our choice of tables so I steered him to one by the window as far from the counter and Josh’s ears as we could get.

“So, what’s up with Seth? Did he run away?” Tom wasted no time introducing the topic I wanted to avoid.

“Not exactly. Grace knows he’s here.” I didn’t fill him in on when she found out about his travel plans. Josh brought our drinks and I waited until he left to ask my next question.

“What’s going on with the Rafe Godwin case?” I focused on my latte and tried to appear casual.

“You know I can’t talk about an active case.” He leaned forward and waited for me to look at him. He lowered his voice. “Mac almost fired me last time.”

I nodded through my twinge of guilt. “I know. I’m sorry. I was just asking because Diana’s so broken up about it. I thought if I could tell her more about how Rafe came in contact with peanuts, it might ease her mind.”

Tom sat back in his seat. I could see the struggle on his face. He wanted to help Diana and loved to talk about his work. He pressed his lips together. Leaning forward, he kept his voice low. “We did hear back from the lab on that. I don’t know if it will ease her mind.” He hesitated.

“And?”

“Maybe you should talk to Mac about this.” He sat back. “I don’t want anything to get out of hand again.”

Tom was referring to the standoff in the woods this past summer. He had apologized about a thousand times for getting me involved in what became a dangerous situation and was apparently still feeling guilty.

“Mac won’t tell me anything. You know how he is.” I heard the desperate note creep into my voice and silently chided myself for manipulating him. “Can you tell me where the peanuts came from?”

Tom sighed and looked out the window. He twisted his lip between his thumb and finger while checking up and down the street.

He leaned forward again. “They found peanut oil in the bread that Diana made.”

“Peanut oil? How did they test for that?”

Tom shrugged. “I don’t know. I didn’t know our lab could do that sort of test, but apparently there was peanut oil on the bread.”

“
On
the bread? Or in it?”

He gave me a flat stare, obviously sorry he’d given in. “It seems that the bread had peanut oil rubbed on the outside.” He sat back and crossed his arms.

“What does Mac say?”

Tom shook his head. “You’re going to have to talk to him about that. I don’t want to get involved. Last time—”

I held up my hand. I knew where this was going. “Okay, okay. I get it. You don’t want to get in trouble with Mac.”

We stared at each other for a moment. If the oil was on the bread, then anyone could have put it there. There’s no way Diana did it, but it didn’t let Dylan off the hook.

“This means anyone at the ceremony or near the food could have done it. But, why?”

Tom nodded, his excitement winning out. “Exactly. The bread was sitting out on the table, according to the people we’ve interviewed so far. It was a serve-yourself kind of setup. Anyone could have—” He stopped abruptly.

“Tom?”

“You aren’t going to get any more out of me.” He turned in his chair to look out the window.

“Do you want some help on this?”

Tom shook his head violently. “No. I was wrong to ask for your help last summer. You have no idea what I went through after the case wrapped up.” He flipped his notebook shut and shoved it into his pocket. “Mac said that if anyone had gotten hurt that night in the woods, it would have been my fault. I have a sworn duty to protect the citizens of Crystal Haven and I didn’t do that this summer. I won’t make the same mistake again, and not just because Mac said he’d kill me if I put you in danger again.” His face flushed pink as he finished.

“Mac said that?”

Tom put up his hand. “Please, Clyde. Just let it go.”

I nodded and glanced out the window at the brown leaves dancing down the street. Tom was right and so was Mac, but I needed to know what was going on. Diana was going to be devastated when she found out that her bread had killed Rafe.

*   *   *

As I walked
to my car, my phone buzzed in my jacket pocket. I pulled it out to check the text. Diana had sent:
911—my house!

Fortunately, she only lived a few minutes from the coffee shop. I ran two stop signs and screeched around the corner to her street. I pulled up behind a police car that had its lights flashing.

Rushing up to the porch, I met Dylan and Charla on their way out. Dylan appeared angry and scared in equal measure. His head was down, but he looked up and caught my eye. I read him loud and clear—
help.
Diana followed, shouting questions at both Charla and Dylan.

“Charla, what’s going on?” I stepped in front of them.

“Clyde, help your friend.” She gestured back toward Diana. “I’m taking Dylan in to the station. He’s under arrest.”

Charla had been on the Crystal Haven police force for as long as I could remember. She was the one who had convinced me to enter the police academy. And while I knew she harbored a soft spot under all the bravado, she rarely showed it. Diana’s face was pale and her eyes welled with tears.

“Diana, we’ll figure this out.” I put my arm around her, wishing that I was better at emotions. I steered her back into the house so she wouldn’t see Dylan getting into the police car.

“Clyde, I can’t believe they’re doing this.” She turned toward me and gripped my arms. “Can you talk to Mac? Convince him he has the wrong person. Dylan could never have done what they’re saying.”

Mac and I thought we were being very discreet, but I wondered yet again whether Diana knew we were together. She seemed to always know what was going on in my life, whether I told her or not.

I led her to the living room and sat next to her on the couch. “What are they saying?”

“Charla said she’s arresting him for Rafe’s murder.” Her voice broke and tears overflowed. She took a shaky breath. “I don’t believe it.”

I patted her back and reached for a box of tissues sitting on the coffee table. “Okay, let’s go down to the station and be sure he gets a lawyer. Do you feel up to this?”

She nodded and clutched the tissue box to her chest.